Toshiba has packed quite a bit of performance into the Centrino-equipped Satellite M40's stylish silver chassis. However, our 3kg test model (PSM40A-03k009) also proved to have limited battery life, with the battery lasting just 62 minutes in our worst-case scenario test.

This model ships with an Intel Pentium M 760 processor, 1GB of DDR2 memory, 80GB hard disk and a dual-layer multiformat DVD writer.

The machine is well suited to multimedia use, with its 15.4" extra-bright screen with high-contrast coating, 128MB Nvidia GeForce Go 6600 graphics plus VGA-out, S-Video TV-out, three USB 2.0 slots and one FireWire port.

An integrated five-in-one media card reader is also built into the front fascia and has a sliding plastic protector. The reader supports Secure Digital (SD), Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, MultiMediaCard and xD-Picture Card.

The M40 also has dedicated CD control buttons, which can be used to quick-load a special interface to play a CD without the need for Windows. This, in addition to the M40's built in harman/kardon speakers, rounds out the multimedia feature set quite nicely.

Integrated networking capabilities cover the gamut of available options: 802.11a/b/g, Bluetooth and infrared for wireless communications; and Ethernet and 56K modem connections on the wired side of things.

Toshiba pre-installs a range of useful configuration, security and recovery utilities.

A one-year international parts and labour warranty is standard. Domestically, it includes on-site courier pickup and return.